Jobseeker Advice

As a financial services recruitment company, we see a huge amount of errors and faux pas made at interview. Below are listed 5 of the things you can do to greatly enhance your chances of securing at least a 2nd interview!

1: After securing your 1st interview date research the company you are being interviewed by. Almost 90% of people do no research so it comes as no surprise that the 10% who do are usually the ones that secure the 2nd interview.

2: Dress to impress – Most potential employers will expect a standard dark blue/black suit, conservative tie and black shoes. A professional uniform for a professional industry

3: Get together a folder of your achievements, performance against target, league tables, any awards won, etc to take with you. It is vital that you can demonstrate any previous success to a potential employer.

4: When answering interview questions on your own negatives make sure that you don’t point out any you might have or if you do, turn them into positives, ie: ‘I can be too target focused sometimes’ or ‘I can be too competitive’. It’s the interviewer’s job to find those out and determine whether they are negatives or not.

5: Always finish the interview with a trial close – something along the lines of ‘From what you’ve seen today can you see any reason why you wouldn’t progress me to 2nd stage?’ or ‘can you see any reason why you wouldn’t offer me the job?’ Most interviewers are impressed by the bold approach and gives you an opportunity to get some idea of direct feedback.